Loading apparatus



Dec. 19, 1944-. E. KHANEN 2,365,546

LOADING APPARATUS Filed April 5, 1945 v INVENTOR 1 f/mef/L//anfen.

' ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 19, 1944 LOADING APPARATUS Elmer K. Hansen,Edgewood, Pa., assignor to Westinghouse Electric & ManufacturingCompany, East Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania ApplicationApril 5, 1943, Serial No. 481,823

6 Claims.

yMy invention relates to loading-apparatus of a type comprising aloading-pan and a stripperplate or member cooperating therewith so thatthe material on the pan may be scraped oif onto or into a device to becharged or loaded. While my invention is of broad application, it hasparticular relation to apparatus for charging a furnace of thebelt-conveyor type, in which it is desired to deposit the material on anendless belt v a very small moment of time, so that the fur- A nace-doorneed be kept open-only a short time, y

thus minimizing the loss or contamination of the atmosphere within thefurnace.

Heretofore, diniculty has lbeen encountered with such loading-apparatus,particularly because of the warping of the bottom of the loading pan, asa result of undergoing repeated cycles of heating and cooling, incharging a furnace. My invention relates to the various means forovercoming this difficulty.

A preferred form of embodiment of my invention is shown, by Way ofillustration, in the drawing, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic elevation, partly in section, showing myloading-apparatus in position relative to a furnace;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional View of the loading-pan, on thesection-plane indicated by the line II-II-in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view through the scraper-member, on thesection-plane indicatedby the line III- III in Fig. 2.

My loading-apparatus is illustrated as comprising a carriage or othersupporting-member 4, which is movable forwardly and backwardly on atrack 6. The carriage or movable supportingmember 4 has two forwardlyprojecting side-arms 8 which, in turn, are provided with a U-bent bottomange 9 (Fig. 2), providing a track for movably supporting a loading-panI0, which is thus movable forwardly and backwardly with reference to theside-arms 8 of the carriage 4. The rear end of the loading-pan Ill isprovided with a long handle I2, which is drawn back by means of a springI4. A catch or latch-member I6 is provided for holding the pan Ill inits cocked or forward position, so that a depression of the latch-memberwill result in a rapid jerking-back of the pan under the action of thespring I4.

The carriage 4 is disposed, on its track 6, in an operative positionwith respect to the door 20 of a furnace 2l, which may be of thebelt-conveyor type, as indicated by the endless belt 22, so that thedoor 20 may be momentarily opened, and the carriage 4 may be quicklyrolled forward so that its forwardly projecting arms 8 extend into thefurnace, with the pan Ill over the belt 22, after which the latch-memberI6 may be instantly tripped, jerking back the pan I0, and depositing itscharge 24 on the belt, and finally, the carriage 4 can be rolled backagain, and the furnace-door 29 closed, all in the space of a few secondstime.

In accordance with my present invention, I preferably minimize warpingof the pan l0 by building its bottom-member with crisscrossedwarping-resisting members, preferably in the form of two metalcorrugated members 30 and 3I, having crisscrossed corrugations joinedtogether, as by welding, at some or all of the touchingpoints 32Y of thecorrugations. The corrugations of the upper corrugated member 30 aredisposed in a forwardly and backwardly extending direction,substantially parallel to the direction of movement of the loading-pan,while the corrugations of the lower corrugated member 3| are disposedtransversely, so as to resist warping in the transverse direction.

In accordance with my invention, I also provide an improved form ofscraper-member 33 which is aixed to the forwardly projecting side-arms 8of the carriage 4, in a position to scrape off the material 24 which iscarried by the wading-pan when the loading-pan is jerked backwardly bythe spring I4, upon the release of the catch IS. The quick backwardjerking of the pan tends to jerk the pan from under its charge 24,permitting said charge to be droppedonto the conveyor-belt 22 withinthefurnace, and the scraper-member 33 serves to scrape off any small pieceswhich may tend to cling to the bottom o-f the pan I0.

In my preferred, or improved, form of scrapermember 33, a movable metalscraper-plate 34 is preferably carried by a stationary scraper-frame 35which is carried by the side-arms 8 of the carriage. The scraper-plate34 is movable in an up-and-down direction, so that the bottom edge ofthe scraper-plate bears against the bottom of the loading pan I0. Anysuitable means may be utilized for pressing the lower edge of thescraperplate 34 against'the bottom of the pan, the illustrated means,for this purpose, being gravity, which is aided, in the illustratedembodiment, by

a special weight-member 36 which is Secured to the Scraper-plate 34. Themovable scraper-assembly 34-36 is loosely guided, in the illustratedform of embodiment, between blocks 31, which are held between front andback plates 38 and 39 of the Scraper-frame 35, by means of bolts 40, theloose play being suicient So that the movable scraper-plate 34 islaterally tiltable, or loose, in an amount sufficient to accommodate itslower edge to any warping or unevenness in the bottom of the loading-panl0, while the latter is being moved backwardly under the impetus 4,ofthe spring I4. The bottom edge of the scraperplate 34 is shaped, ofcourse, to accommodate the top surface of the bottom of the loading-pan|10, that iS, to accommodate the corrugations of the upper corrugatedmember 30.

In accordance with my invention, I also preferably subdivide thescraper-plate 34 into a plurality of individual Scrapers 34A, 34B, 34Cetc., each of the individual Scrapers having a width considerably lessthan the width `of the loadingpan .l 0, the plurality of indiyidualScrapers being so disposed that substantially the entirematerialsupporting bottom `of the Vloading-pan is collec,- tivelyscraped by the plurality of Scrapers. Preferably, the pluralityl ofindividual Scrapers are alined, end-to-end,"in close, but spacedrelation to each other, as indicated by the close spacing ,42 in Fig. 2,so that the individual Scrapers have avery slight amount of tiltabilityin the lateral direction, with respect to each other, so as to enablethem to individually accommodate themselves to any slight roughness orwarping of the corrugated pan-bottom' on which the Scrapers are resting.

InV operation, experience has proved that the crisscrossedVbottom-construction of the lo-ading-pan ld constitutes a very eectivewarp-resisting construction; and .that the vertical movement and loosemounting of the scraper-plate, together with the subdivision of thescrapermember into'a number of individual scrapingelements of relativelysmall width, constitutes a very effective means for' scraping oi eventhe thinnest of paper-thin objects from the bottom of the tray lil.

While I have illustrated my invention in a single form of embodiment,which at present is the preferredl form, itwill beobvious ,that manychanges may be made, in the way of substituting equivalents, addingrefinements, or omitting some of the `features whichrnay not always benecessary. I desire it to be understood, therefore, that the drawing isonly illustrative, and that the appended claims are to be accorded thewidest construction consistent with their language.

I claim as my invention:

1. A loading-apparatus comprising a forwardly and backwardly movableSupporting-member having forwardly projecting side-arms adapted toproject over the place where material is to be deposited, a forwardlyand backwardly movable loading-member movably supported on saidsidearms, and ascraper member carried by said sidearms in a position toscrape oi the material carried by said loading-member when theloadingmember is moved backwardly with respect to said side-arms, saidscraper-member comprising a plurality of Scrapers individually bearingagainst the bottom or the loading-member, means for so guiding each ofsaid Scrapers that it is individually movable in an up-,and-downdirection and each individually laterally tiltable in an amountsuilcient to accommodate the bottoms of the individual Scrapers to anyunevenness in the bottom of the loading-member while the latter is beingmoved backwardly, each of the individual Scrapers having a widthconsiderably less than the width of the loading-member, and the scrapersbeing So disposed that substantially the entire material-Supportingbottom of the loadingmember is collectively scraped by the plurality ofScrapers.

2. A loading-apparatus adapted to operate under such repeated cycles ofheating and cooling that wrapping is a diiculty, comprising a forwardlyand vbackwardly movable supportingmember 'having forwardly projectingside-arms adapted to project over the place where material is -to bedeposited, a forwardly and backwardly movable loading-member movablysupported on Said'side-arms, the bottom of said loading-member havingcrisscrossed warp-resisting members so .disposed that the top Surfaceaof Said bottom has forwardly and backwardly disposed elevated-portionsthereon substantially parallel to the direction of movement of saidloading-member, and a scraper-member carried by said side-arms in aposition to scrape oli the material carried by said loading-member whenthe loading-member is moved backwardly with respect to said side-arms,Said Scraper-member comprising a plurality of Scrapers individuallybearing against the bottom of the loading-member, means for so guidingeach of said Scrapers that it is individually movable in an up-and-downdirection and each individually laterally tiltable in an amountSuiiicient to accommodate the bottoms of the individual Scrapers to anyunevenneSS in the bottom of the loading-member while the latter is beingmoved backwardly, the bottoms of the Scrapers being shaped toaccommodate the top Surface of the bottom of Said loading-member, eachof the individual .Scrapers having a width considerably less than thewidth of the loading-member, and the Scrapers being so disposed thatSubstantially the entire material-Supl porting bottom of theloading-member iS collectively scraped by the plurality of Scrapers.

3. A loading-apparatus adapted to operate under such repeated cycles ofheating and cooling that warping is a difculty, comprising a forwardlyand backwardly movable supportingmember having forwardly projectingside-arms adapted to project over the place where material is to bedeposited, a forwardly and backwardly movable loading-member movablysupported on Said Side-arms, the bottom of said loading-member beingcomposed of` at least two corrugated members having crisscrossedcorrugations joined together at numerous points, the corrugations yofthe upper corrugated member being disposed in a forwardly and backwardlyeX- tending direction substantially parallel to the direction ofmovement of said loading-member, and a scraper-member carried by `saidside-arms in a position to scrape off lthe material carried by Saidloading-member when the loading-member is movedlbaclgwardly with respectto Said sidearms, Said Scraper-member comprising a plurality of Scrapersindividually bearing against the bottom of the loading-member, means forSo guiding each of Said Scrapers that it is individually movable in anup-and-down direction and each individually laterally tiltable in anamount sufficient to accommodate the bottoms'of the lindividualvScrapers to lany unevenness inA the botmember, and the scrapers beingso disposed that substantially the entire material-supporting bottom ofthe loading-member is collectively scraped by the plurality of Scrapers.

4. The invention as delined in claim 2, characterized by the pluralityof individual Scrapers being alined, end to end, in close, but spaced,relation to each other.

5. The invention as defined in claim 4, characterized by the pluralityof Jndividual Scrapers 5 being alined, end to end, in close, but spaced,re-

lation to each other.

6. The invention as dened in claim 6, characterized by the plurality ofindividual scrapers being alined, end to end, in close, but spaced, re-

10 lation to each other.

ELMER K. HANSEN.

